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On Wednesday, June 17, it was a day of contrasts at the : Austria and England confidently fulfilled their obligations, Colombia made a solid debut, and Portugal delivered the first major surprise of the tournament by being unable to go beyond a draw against the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Austria suffers but wins
Austria needed more time than expected to overcome Jordania 3-1 at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara. Romano Schmid put the Europeans ahead in the 21st minute, but Ali Olwan, who scored the first goal for Jordania in World Cup history, equalized after the break and put Ralf Rangnick's team in a difficult position.
A own goal by Yazan Al-Arab in the 77th minute restored the Austrian lead when a draw seemed the most likely outcome. Already in stoppage time, Marko Arnautović converted a penalty awarded by VAR to seal the final score at 3-1.
With the victory, Austria earns three points and trails Argentina in Group J. It was also the first win for the Austrians in a World Cup since Italy 1990.
Portugal concedes an unexpected draw
In Houston, Portugal could not overcome a resilient Democratic Republic of the Congo and settled for a 1-1 draw that shook up Group K.
João Neves put the Portuguese team ahead in the 34th minute with a collective play initiated by Bruno Fernandes, but Yoane Wissa took advantage of a loose ball inside the area to equalize in the 68th minute.
Cristiano Ronaldo did not find the goal and the Congolese defensive resistance, with goalkeeper Lionel Mpasi as the standout, prevented any last-minute reaction from the Portuguese side. The draw keeps the group open and increases the pressure on Portugal ahead of the next matchday.
England thrashes Croatia with a historic performance from Kane
England delivered one of the most exciting matches of the day by defeating Croatia 4-2 in Dallas. Harry Kane scored a double against Croatia —in the 12th and 42nd minutes— and tied with Gary Lineker as the highest English scorer in World Cup history with 10 goals.
Croatia went into halftime tied 2-2 thanks to goals from Martin Baturina and Petar Musa, but they couldn't maintain the pace in the second half. Jude Bellingham showcased a brilliant individual effort for the 3-2, and Marcus Rashford sealed the victory in the 85th minute after a swift counterattack.
Ghana wins in the final moments
Ghana struggled to overcome Panama 1-0 in Toronto. The Panamanians controlled a good part of the first half and created several clear chances, but goalkeeper Lawrence Ati-Zigi was unbeatable.
Ghana defeated Panama in stoppage time thanks to Caleb Yirenkyi, who emerged in the 90+5 minute to finish a play inside the box and secure three golden points for the Africans. The result places Ghana as co-leader of Group L alongside England.
Colombia leads Group K
Colombia made a grand entrance with a 3-1 victory over Uzbekistan at the Estadio Azteca. Daniel Muñoz opened the scoring in the 41st minute with an assist from Luis Díaz, although Abbosbek Fayzullaev equalized after an error by goalkeeper Camilo Vargas.
Néstor Lorenzo's team's reaction was immediate: Luis Díaz restored the lead in the 65th minute, and Jáminton Campaz sealed the 3-1 victory in stoppage time, placing Colombia at the top of Group K with three points, ahead of Portugal and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, who drew in their debut.
The first day of these three groups made it clear that no favorite will have an easy path in this 2026 World Cup.
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